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Contact Lenses Worn by Sleeping Children Can Prevent Short-Sightedness

Pediatric Optometry in Houston

Short-sightedness could be eradicated in children through the use of night-time contact lenses that promote the formation of healthy eye shapes while they sleep, a new study has shown.

The reshaping process, known as orthokeratology, involves the use of soft contact lenses that correct abnormalities in eye shape that can result in short-sightedness.

The research involved a three-year trial of more than 300 children and produced some remarkable results: according to Sarah Knapton of The Telegraph, none of the participants who wore the soft lenses at night over the course of the trial experienced any detrimental changes in their vision.

Kids based in control groups, however, who didn’t receive the orthokeratology treatment, weren’t so lucky, with some suffering a rapid deterioration in vision over the three-year period.

The new research follows a recent study that found myopia has become a significantly worse problem over the last half-century, with short-sightedness in children doubling over the past 50 years.

That research found 23 percent of children aged 12 to 13 suffered from myopia, whereas data from the 1960s showed only one in 10 kids experienced the problem. It has been suggested that the decline in children’s eye health is related to the amount of time spent outdoors, with today’s kids spending too much time indoors.